Travel: half of Spain’s hotels remain closed. Overnight stays down 70% but gradual recovery

TOURISM remains the sector hit hardest by the Covid-19 pandemic as both
domestic and international travellers were held back by the health restrictions across Spain.

Overnight stays fell 70% in April this year compared to the same month in 2019 – there are no comparisons with last year as the country was under a national lockdown.

In figures released today by the National Institute of Statistics, there were just 4 million overnight stays last month, compared to 26.8 million for the same period in Spanish residents made up 2.7 million of overnight guests, only 1.3 million were foreign visitors.

The statistics explain why at the end of April only 9,195 hotels were open for business across Spain, 50.9% of the official total. However, that is 1,500 more establishments offering accommodation compared to the end of 2020.

Experts predict the continued recovery of the market and the general hope of a better summer for 2021.